Grand Cru | Great Lakes Brewing Co.

0 characters.
We love reviews! Turn your rating into one with ≥ 150 characters. Awesome. Thanks for the review!

Explain why you're giving this rating. Your review must discuss the beer's attributes (look, smell, taste, feel) and your overall impression in order to indicate that you have legitimately tried the beer. Nonconstructive reviews may be removed without notice and action may be taken on your account.

Stopped up in Cleveland for dinner and a drink. Had the opportunity to try two new beers, this one included, and was very excited.

Appearance- Comes off of the tap a hazy amber gold with a creamy looking half finger of white head sitting on top. Amazing head retention for coming off the tap, and the head sits there for the entire duration of the drink. Lots of sticky lacing left in layers down the side of the glass as well. A looker.

Smell- Lots of fruity esters and yeastiness coming off of this one. Banana, some bitter orange, and spiciness. Smells big and tasty.

Taste- Again, very fruity and yeasty. Lots of banana, orange, and bready yeastiness. Spices, cloves, and coriander come through as well. Quite complex but goes down incredibly easy.

Mouthfeel/Drinkability- Mouthfeel is substantial and creamy for the style, which makes the drinking experience even more enjoyable. Drinkability is stellar, a very easy drinking but quite complex brew.

Overall, I was surprisingly impressed with this one. Quite enjoyable, and I recommend that if you can get to the brewpub to give it a try.

Poured from the hand pump at TJs into a tulip glass on 6/9. This is the first time that I have had the opportunity to have any Belgian style from a cask setup, so I guess this will be the beer that provides the measuring stick to see if I will try another if the opportunity arises.

The pour is somewhat atypical of what you would see from just about any beer that is hand pumped. The head that forms is more indicative of a highly carbonated Belgian style than it is the 1-2 finger head that an English cask ale would produce. Reaching a full 2 inches in height before being allowed to settle a bit and get topped off, this beer from the start looks like a Belgian. There is some slight haze in an light orangey colored body, something akin to peach or apricot.

The aroma is fully of spice and fruits. Strong clove, white pepper, and coriander are all present, adding to this beer's Belgian pedigree. Apricots, peaches, and even some slight citrusy notes find their way in here, as well. There is a bready sweetness that rounds it out and pulls it all together, too.

On the palate, the spices do start to run away with this. Far more phenolic than the aroma indicated, the clove and white pepper does have a dominating effect on the palate. Warm alcohol also squirms its way into the finish. The stone fruits are less notable, but still present. A touch of sweet candi sugar comes in late, but it is not enough to counteract the dominant spice. I would have hoped for a bit more balance here.

Out of a cask, I don't get the distinctive Belgian effervescence that the yeast so often gives. While the consistency was medium just as a Belgian Strong Pale should be, the overall impression of the texture fell short of what I expected. Belgians are better out of a tap, for sure. I hope I can try this one that way sometime.

This was the surprise of the session. Poured a warm, cloudy honey amber color with a tight head of off-while foam that laced very nicely. What a wonderful nose! The aromas of citrus, spices and cloves, mildly peppered..this is more intense than Holy Moses!

Its warm and soothing on the tongue, rich in spices, citrus...again more intense than Holy Moses. What is going on here? It evened out and finished beautifully, kinda slick and syrupy on the throat. This was a very nice ale, one that I will keep an eye open for and definitely enjoy more in the future, Definitely worth a try.

Served in a Tulip glass, poured from a 32oz crowler purchased from the brewery on 03/23/16. From the can, 7.8% ABV, 30 IBU.

Appearance: Clear deep copper color with a white head that died back to a persistent ring. Some persistent strands of lacing.

Smell: Yeast, phenol, fruity esters, clove.

Taste: At first, quite sweet, with definite Belgian style fruity esters and a candi-sugar like taste. As it warmed up, some more yeasty flavors, coriander, and leafy/earthy hop finish noted.

Mouthfeel: Very smooth and has a nice thickness to it, but undercarbonated for style. However, I can't fault that too much since I'm at the limit for how long the Crowler was going to hold the carbonation. I suspect it would have been more effervescent if I had served it up right away.

Overall / Drinkability: A Belgian Strong Pale Ale that is among the sweeter ones I've ever tried, but full flavored and quite enjoyable. It needs to warm up a bit to let all the flavors out, and its best to have when fresh, but after 3 days in a crowler, still quite good. Definitely glad I had a large glass of this (I split the crowler with the Mrs.) and I'll have to try again fresh when I see it at the brewery on a future visit. Went well with food, which was pulled pork BBQ and roasted root vegetables (beets, parsnips, potatoes, carrots).

This beer poured a creamy gold banana juice color that was rather cloudy with a dollop of meringue that left tons of drippy lace in my glass.

Smells a bit like banana too with a crisp, sweet plumb and coriander that fades to a numb hop right at the bitter point of the plumb. Theres a spicy black pepper yeast and a touch of honey too.

The spicy dryness shines in the flavor with some stale white bread and a touch of sour black pepper that fades over to a dry fallen pine. A little orange juice leaks out in the finish rounding the trip off with a pleasant creaminess.

This ones delightfully thick with a little sing of carbonation that helps the bite work its way through.

Another wonderful on-tap "pub exclusive" from Great Lakes enjoyed by me a few weeks ago. Reviewed from notes.

This beer is a cloudy orange/amber color. It reminded me of apple cider. White head is a good 1/2 inch thick when drawn before eventually settling to a very thin white ring lining the inside of my glass. Aromas of coriander, banana and orange, sweet Belgian candy, a trace of hops, and bits of clove and pepper. The taste is pretty much the same, along with a nice floral hop flavor balancing out all the sweetness, fruityness, and spice. Has a crisp, full bodied mouthfeel with moderate carbonation. Very good drinkability. I really wish Great Lakes would brew Belgian style ales more often because this one was excellent!

This one has a big poofy white head. It's very citrusy with orange and clove. It's very drinkable as well with a good malt backbone. A bit hoppy-bitter for style. Before I even found out that it was basically Holy Moses big brother, I noticed the similarities. Both are excellent beers.

Pours a hazy dull amber color, average head and lacing. Smells sweet, hint of hops, lilac. Average ale, has a subtitle pilsner hoppiness, slightly sweet, Belgian style yeast, well balanced, a little fruity. Nice carbonation, not a pallette offender. Overall a nice BPA, very similar to ommegang's. One of the better offerings from GL brewing.

Poured from a growler into a snifter. The color is a nice hazy golden color with some lighter highlights when held up to the light.

The smell is a rich bouquet of citrus, various spices, yeast and a hint of malt sweetness in the background. Little to no hops present in the smell, as the spices and citrus (I'm guessing from the orange peel, not the hops) balance out the sweetness of the malt.

The taste is similar to the smell in its complexity. There is a nice full malty flavor up front with a flavor that is a tiny bit raisin-like. Spices and tartness from the orange peel come in next. The finish is pleasantly dry with just enough of that classic Belgian yeast dryness lingering on the palate.

Overall, a great take on a Belgian style pale ale by the GLBC. Alcohol is hardly noticeable making this one deceptively drinkable.

Aroma of wheat and peppery spice. In the taste, wheat, pepper and coriander. Bready malt notes and a dry spice bite. Little presence of hops, which come across earthy if anything. Light dusty yeast notes and grainy malt. Mild but tempered sweetness with the spices and dry orange peel. Medium bodied, crisp and well carbonated with a spice bite. Overall, this is a nice little Belgian style gold. A thoroughly enjoyable rarity from Great Lakes.

pours orange and murky with a belgian style minimalist head and lacing of white bubbles that lay soupy and thick on the surface. smells yeasty with big orange blossom nose. body is lighter than it looks. a little too much alcohol bite for the abv, but intense, flavorful sweetness.. coriander and floral notes help hide it. finishes real clean with a bit of bitterness to last you through to the next sip. excellent american grasp of a belgian style here.

This is a very hazy straw color. Lots of little particulates. Looks almost like an unfiltered wheat. Small ring of off-white head, and sticky lacing.
Nose is very bready. Lots of yeasts and orange juice. Some orange rind too. Sweet and dense. Nice.
Taste is sweet Belgian sugars, yeasty and sugary citrus. Slight spiciness and lots of orange. Pretty tasty.